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This resource is part of the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness’ Point-in-Time Count Toolkit. The Toolkit is designed to support communities participating in the Government of Canada’s HPS Coordinated Count.

USING THIS RESOURCEThis resource will help you to create a Shelter Enumeration Form for your community. To obtain a complete picture of homelessness during your count, you will need to collect administrative data from all participating shelters and transitional housing units. At a minimum, agencies should provide the number of individuals using their services on the night of the count. Without this information, you will not have a complete count. The Shelter Enumeration Form ensures the data you receive from participating agencies is consistent and complete. The Shelter Enumeration Form can be adapted to collect information from public facilities such as hospitals, correctional facilities and juvenile detention centers.

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COH Point-in-Time Count Toolkit — Shelter Enumeration Forms

Components of a Shelter Enumeration FormPoint-in-time Counts yield two types of data: the minimum number of individuals experiencing homelessness in a community and basic information about their experiences. In an unsheltered count, this data is collected through surveys and tally sheets. In a sheltered count, there are several data collection options to choose from. These options are discussed in COH PiT Count Toolkit: Emergency Shelter & Transitional Bed Count.

Ideally, you will work with shelter providers to administer surveys to individuals that are interested in participating in the count. In some cases, this may not be feasible. Regardless of your approach, you will need to collect basic data - such as occupancy rates on the night of the count - from local shelters and transitional housing providers.

We recommend that you collect shelter and transitional housing data through a Shelter Enumeration Form. This form ensures that data collection is consistent across service providers.

Shelter Enumeration Forms contain four components. Each component is discussed in turn.

1. Context2. Basic Information3. Enumeration Data4. Demographic Data

1. Context Your Shelter Enumeration Form should not be long, but it should contain basic information about the purpose of the count and the importance of participation. Refer to COH PiT Count Toolkit: Email to Shelter Providers and FAQ for helpful language. Ensure that your enumeration form includes the following:

Purpose of the count Importance of shelter participation

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This resource is part of the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness’ Point-in-Time Count Toolkit. The Toolkit is designed to support communities participating in the Government of Canada’s HPS Coordinated Count.

Remember: if you are surveying in shelters, the Shelter Enumeration Form provides you with information that may be missed through the survey process (ex. not everyone participated in

the survey). If you are not surveying in shelters, the Shelter Enumeration Form is your sole source of unsheltered data.

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COH Point-in-Time Count Toolkit — Shelter Enumeration Forms

Date of the count Contact details for the PiT Count Coordinator Glossary/definitions of terms (ex. Emergency shelter, youth, occupancy) Guidelines for submission Deadline

2. Basic InformationInclude a section for basic contact details. It is best to work with a single contact at each shelter in the event that you need to follow-up or seek clarification.

Name of Agency

Address

Date of Enumeration[Note to PiT Count Coordinators: fill in count date]

Contact Name

Contact Number

Contact Email Address

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This resource is part of the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness’ Point-in-Time Count Toolkit. The Toolkit is designed to support communities participating in the Government of Canada’s HPS Coordinated Count. 3

COH Point-in-Time Count Toolkit — Shelter Enumeration Forms

3. Enumeration DataEnumeration data is the minimum information required from shelters and transitional housing providers. Without the occupancy from each shelter, you cannot calculate the number of individuals experiencing homelessness during your count. Service providers should indicate

which type of accommodation they provide. We recommend that you provide a list of options, with definitions of each. Refer to the Canadian Definition of Homelessness for information.

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This resource is part of the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness’ Point-in-Time Count Toolkit. The Toolkit is designed to support communities participating in the Government of Canada’s HPS Coordinated Count. 4

Type of Agency

[Note to PiT Count Coordinators: Provide a list of options to select from. For example: emergency shelter, transitional housing, cold weather shelter, hotel/motel, Violence Against Women shelter. Agencies with multiple programs should complete a separate form for each program.]

Occupancy# of individuals

Total Capacity# of beds

Turnaways

Maximum Length of Stay

COH Point-in-Time Count Toolkit — Shelter Enumeration Forms

4. DemographicsIn addition to enumeration data, you should collect basic demographic information about shelter and transitional housing clients. If you are not surveying in shelters, administrative data will be the only way to collect information about the sheltered homeless population. If you are surveying in sheltered locations, administrative data will allow you to determine whether the surveys you collect are representative of the general shelter population.

In some cases, service providers may have easy access to demographic information about their clients. This information can be easily shared. In other cases, it may be an administrative burden for shelters or transitional housing providers to collect and report this information. Work with each of your local providers to develop practical solutions.

For reference, we have prepared four sample options.

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This resource is part of the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness’ Point-in-Time Count Toolkit. The Toolkit is designed to support communities participating in the Government of Canada’s HPS Coordinated Count. 5

Options Summary Considerations

A

Option A asks shelters and transitional housing providers to provide anonymous, individual level data (including family status, age, gender and Aboriginal identity) for clients using their services on the night of the count.

Option A, individual level data, provides the greatest flexibility in the data analysis phase. For some agencies, individual level data can be easily exported. For others, individual data will be cumbersome to report. Work with your local shelter and transitional housing providers to determine whether Option A is feasible. Never disclose or report individual level administrative data. Like survey data, all results should be aggregated.

B

Option B asks for aggregated demographic information such as age, gender and Aboriginal identity. Service providers are asked to indicate the ages of each client separately.

In some cases, it may be easier for agencies to provide aggregated or “rolled-up” data. Option B will give you enough information to determine whether the survey samples are representative of the broader shelter/transitional housing population. Where possible, agencies should report the ages of all clients on the night of the count. This allows you to provide a more fulsome age breakdown in the report.

C

Option C is similar to Option B but age is reported as an aggregate, rather than at the individual level. Providers are asked to indicate the number of youth, families and seniors using their services during the count.

Agencies that are unable to provide a full list of ages should indicate the number of unaccompanied youth, seniors and families staying in their facility sure the count. Ensure that you provide definitions and target age ranges for each category.

D

Option D is adapted from a form used by the 2015 Winnipeg Street Census. It collects gender, Aboriginal identity, family status and age, broken down into commonly used ranges.

Option D provides greater detail than Option B and C but may be less resource intensive to complete than Option A.

COH Point-in-Time Count Toolkit — Shelter Enumeration Forms

Option A

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This resource is part of the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness’ Point-in-Time Count Toolkit. The Toolkit is designed to support communities participating in the Government of Canada’s HPS Coordinated Count. 6

Entry #(# or #a, #b, #c, to indicate families)

Gender(Male, Female,

Transgender, Other)

Age(Years)

Aboriginal Identity(Yes, No)

1 Female 25 Yes

2 Female 45 No

3 Female 32 No

3b Male 5 No

3c Female 8 No

COH Point-in-Time Count Toolkit — Shelter Enumeration Forms

Option B

Option C

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This resource is part of the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness’ Point-in-Time Count Toolkit. The Toolkit is designed to support communities participating in the Government of Canada’s HPS Coordinated Count.

Remember: the first five demographics are the most important in the context of a PiT Count. Work with shelter providers to determine whether additional information, such as what is

listed here, is practical to obtain through administrative data.

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Demographics Ages

Males (#) 18

Females (#) 24

Transgender (#) 33

Aboriginal (#) 29

Families (#)

Canadian Forces (#)

Immigrant/Refugee (#)

Demographics

Males (#)

Females (#)

Transgender (#)

Other Gender Reponses (#)

Aboriginal (#)

Families (#)

Unaccompanied Youth 0-24 (#)

Seniors 65+ (#)

COH Point-in-Time Count Toolkit — Shelter Enumeration Forms

____________________________

This resource is part of the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness’ Point-in-Time Count Toolkit. The Toolkit is designed to support communities participating in the Government of Canada’s HPS Coordinated Count.

The Canadian Observatory on Homelessness defines youth up to the age of 24. If your community uses a different definition of youth (or seniors) adjust the age ranges accordingly. Your Shelter Enumeration Form should clearly explain the definitions your using in your count

(ex. youth, families, seniors).

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COH Point-in-Time Count Toolkit — Shelter Enumeration Forms

Option D

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This resource is part of the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness’ Point-in-Time Count Toolkit. The Toolkit is designed to support communities participating in the Government of Canada’s HPS Coordinated Count. 9

FAMILIES

Total # of Families[Adult(s) with dependent (s)] #___________

Demographics Ages

Gender Aboriginal 0-5 6-12 13-17 18-24 24-44 45-64 65+

FemaleYes

No

MaleYes

No

TransgenderYes

No

Other Response Yes

INDIVIDUALS(ADULTS + UNACCOMPANIED YOUTH)

Total # of Individuals #___________

Demographics Ages

Gender Aboriginal 0-5 6-12 13-17 18-24 24-44 45-64 65+

FemaleYes

No

MaleYes

No

TransgenderYes

No

Other Response Yes

COH Point-in-Time Count Toolkit — Shelter Enumeration Forms

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This resource is part of the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness’ Point-in-Time Count Toolkit. The Toolkit is designed to support communities participating in the Government of Canada’s HPS Coordinated Count. 10